Sibelius 2 for Mac OS X will become one of the first major music applications to be OS X native when it is released first quarter 2002. The Windows version of the leading music notation software, available now, already exhibits Aqua-inspired interface effects including transparency, an apparently Office v.X-inspired toolbar/properties palette, and Aqua-like buttons. Version 2.0 is the largest overhaul yet to Finale’s major competitor, with a long list of new features and improvements.
Sibelius 2 for Mac OS X will become one of the first major music applications to be OS X native when it is released first quarter 2002. The Windows version of the leading music notation software, available now, already exhibits Aqua-inspired interface effects including transparency, an apparently Office v.X-inspired toolbar/properties palette, and Aqua-like buttons. Version 2.0 is the largest overhaul yet to Finale’s major competitor, with a long list of new features and improvements.
The 200 feature improvements are too extensive to name (as an experienced Sibelius user and trainer, expect an in-depth review from me when the Mac version ships). Briefly, some of the changes include extensive lyrics handling improvements, magnetic, automatic tuplets, Finale 2002 import, “multicopy”, custom percussion mapping, color and “highlighting”, more options for humanizing playback, playback of glissandos, accel/rit., and even guitar notation like bends, unlimited hidden objects, automatic customizable arranging and keyboard reductions, timecode and score duration information, advanced filter and find, improved web publishing, global spacing of staves, and free trial access to the extensive research resource Grovemusic.com.
The new features are covered in depth at Sibelius’ website. It’s tremendously exciting for those of us who use Sibelius every day to write music that Sibelius will be giving us both an OS X-native version (giving us access to OS X features like instant PDF creation), and the largest upgrade since Sibelius hit the Mac, all at once. Sibelius will be Carbonized for both OS 8.6 and later and OS X (native).
Full disclosure: the author is employed by Sibelius North America as an ambassador (sales and training) to education customers.
Please feel free to e-mail me with your thoughts on Sibelius or other Mac notation solutions like GVox Encore and Coda Finale, and certainly keep me posted of any more OS X music news!
